April Just in Time....

Time for another SFYTT....and oh I am just barely making it on this one!....lol.  I have about 30 minutes!  Here is a pic of the sketch:

And my card made with Authentique, Spellbinders (inverted scallops and
classic circles), Distress Ink in Vintage Photo and Broken China, the
Sweet Pea stamp set from Shabby Chic Stamp Co. and some yummy
Trendy Twine!  The result is a simple and easy baby card:

I love simplicity sometimes, don't you?  Have a happy day tomorrow.....it will
be if you get the chance to have a little inky fun!!

White Out....

Have you ever tried a white space blank white canvas card?  Kinda out of my
comfort zone I must say!  I did this card for the Practical Scrappers site today,
and they have some other fun examples too!  You can check them out HERE.

As for this card.....I used the ever awesome Skipping Stones Designs stamp
set Funny Coffee vol. #1, stamped, stamped and re-stamped to paper piece
the cup.  The paper is EP, the ink is Distress Ink (used black soot, tea dye,
and festive berry....my very new fave!).  The stars are from a CM punch,
and a bit of twine and buttons from my stash are the finishing touches.  Oh,
and that bit of corrugated beneath it all....yep....my Caribou Coffee cup
sleeve....distressed it up around the edges with the tonic distress tool, and
added some ink and paint (snow cap adirondack dabber).

Hope you take time for a little inky fun today too!!

Mom's Day....Quilted with Love....

With Mother's Day around the corner.....thought I'd post a sweet lil' Mom's Day card today!

                           

Shabby Chic Stamp Co. Stamps were used for this card....both for the
sentiment and the mom and daughter....isn't that just the sweetest stamp?
I paper pieced it....pulled out some Cosmo Cricket I'd gotten and never broke
the seal....how sad is that?  These little patterns were perfect for paper piecing,
and it kinda reminds me of a quilt....handmade, cozy, and full of love.....perfect
for Mom's Day!

If you'd like to check out the stamps.....they are on sale!!!  They are getting
close to a sell out....she wants a clear slate when she goes into summer sets!
You can find them HERE.

To make this card:
Paper: Cosmo Cricket Odds & Ends mini deck
basic black (recollections) and white (GP) cardstock
Stamps:  Shabby Chic Stamp Co.
Ink: Distress Ink Shabby Shutters & Black Soot
Markers:  Copic
Dies:  Spellbinders scallop hearts & ovals
Embellishments: charcoal twine, hug snug seam binding (white),
black button (stash) and MM Paper Reverie bling

More Mom's Day on the way....so pop back soon!   And hey....any plans for
National Scrapbook Day??  I'm hoping to have some fun....how about you?
 

On the Wings of Spring...

I don't know of anything that carries the whispers of springtime better than a butterfly. The colors, their graceful flight....and you start to see them as springtime is fully here, and is winging it's way toward summer. Beautiful!

And this inspiration:


Leads me to this card:



It's a card for an embossing post on Practical Scrappers....and also for
the inspiration site....Moxie Fab World....it's their "Tuesday Trigger"
challenge....find it HERE and you can play too!

The soft look of the butterflies was done using a Tim Holtz embossing folder,
inked with Spun Sugar and Ripe Persimmon, and then run thru the cuttlebug.
I used the indented look (reverse embossed image) on the card.....I love
the way it looks like butterflies done in water colors in soft pastels....
just like the inspiration pic!

My "shopping list":
Paper: MME Miss Caroline Dolled Up 6x6 pad
Cardstock: Taylored Expressions
Embossing Folder: Tim Holtz Texture Fades Springtime
Inks: Spun Sugar and Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink
Stamps: Shabby Chic Stamp Co. Greetings set
Punch: Martha Stewart
Ribbon: Seam Binding My Craft Spot Petal Pink
Rhinestones: Recollections
Button: Cosmo Cricket
Twine: The Twinery Cantaloupe

Neglected....

Well, yes, my poor poor little blog has been neglected this week!!! My family
wanted a cleaned up house, food and clean laundry....the very NERVE....lol.

Well, kidding aside....the projects have been rolling here....just finding time to
get good pics (the key word here being GOOD) and then uploading, editing, and
then posting. So I did get this one up....did this LO last weekend with the new
Trinity Paper Arts "Making the Team" kit. Super cute, super versatile....has
a lot of sports in one kit.....like the fact it's dual sided for more use too!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope to get more up this week, and remember....
you should take a "Time Out" too, and get a little crafty!!

May Arts Candy Colored Challenge Entry

I was so excited to get the chance to participate in the May Arts Ribbon Challenge
for Spring!! This entry uses all 4 of the ribbons (we had to of course!)....the pic
is "framed out" with the velvety aqua ribbon, and the yellow, orange and bright
pink ribbons are along the bottom as a pretty banner edge.

A fun challenge, and a huge thanks to May Arts for letting me participate!! You
can "vote" for my project, or just enjoy looking thru all of the projects....they
truly are stunning! If you do, you also get a chance at some free ribbon!!!
That "Ribbon Lady"....she'd one generous gal!!

Check out the contest HERE!!

Oh Baby!

Have you ever noticed we seem to go thru "seasons"....times when it
seems like every time you turn around, it's a teacher's gift, a coach
thank you....then all of a sudden it's graduations, and before you know
it, it's weddings and babies! Well, I have several family members that
are starting to get into that wedding/baby area....so I decided to get
ahead on some of these cards!! This card was the first of many!

I used the adorable Sweet Pea set from Shabby Chic Stamp Co. and
this card is also up on Practical Scrappers today.....I've been chosen
to be one of the Fresh Face Designers over there!!! Really excited!!

I used the new Echo Park Boy's Life for the paper, Trendy Twine,
a button from my stash, the MS punch, and Distress Ink in Stormy
Sky and Weathered Wood (both stamped off, and then layered to
get the color I really wanted!).

Enjoy the springtime weather....hope it's nice wherever you are!

Time for some inky fun!!

Easter Blessings

In playing with my Shabby Chic Stamp Co (SCSC) Easter Blessings
set, I created a couple of cards that I just love. The cross in the
center with the flowers and the sentiment are stamped from the
set....colored with copics....a gorgeous stamp isn't it? I could not
believe how perfectly it layer up with the Spellbinders Crosses Two
set. I used Spellbinders labels 18 under that....embossed with
a cuttlebug swiss dot folder. Silver liquid pearls are the finishing
touch. The papers....oh so pretty MME follow your heart.

This card....same stamp....sentiment from the same SCSC set....and
it was completely done with my Taylored Expressions kit....MME
takes the stage again (Lost and Found Two) and Prima flowers
(LOVE these colors!), Want2Scrap Pearls, and yes, another lovely
new creation from Spellbinders....Splendid Circles.

Hope everyone has a truly blessed Easter weekend....enjoying
times with family and friends, in a celebration of our gift of
forgiveness!!

How Thrifty Can You Craft?

It's always amazing to me how much "bang for a buck" you can get
when you craft. Yes, all the embellies, pretty papers, etc. can just
get you gaga...ok, now that NEVER happens to me tho' ;) But this
set of 5 cards is for the 5 for $5 challenge over at Moxie Fab World,
and shows that this can be a very thrifty hobby indeed!

And would you like to play too? You have until April 9th! Check it HERE.

We have to give an accounting of what we spent....I do NOT have a receipt,
I did want to be frugal and use my stash....BUT all 5 cards were made
off of ONE sheet of paper....From the Echo Park Victoria Gardens
collection, I used the journal box sheet. One side the gorgeous patterned
boxes, one side that pretty pink brocade you see.

Now I am a very frugal shopper....love to get the most for my money
when it comes to crafty goodness, I usually buy on clearance, or in
bulk, so my spending on these cards is as follows:

1 sheet EP Victoria Gardens paper (.79)
White Cardstock--I use jumbo packs of Georgia Pacific
3 sheets at 8 cents per sheet (.24)
Black Cardstock--Recollections 25/$1 one sheet (.04)
1 yd. twine (.10)
6 buttons at .03 each (.18)
Hello and Butterfly stamp set--from the $1 bin, but on clearance! (.50)
Want2Scrap bling--I used about 1/4 of the pack, but full price (.99)

So to sum that up:
.79
.24
.04
.10
.l8
.50
.99
___
$2.84 Total

So when someone says this is an expensive hobby....let them
know....don't think you could BUY 5 cards for that price!!!.....LOL!
And really cute cards too!....lol.

The only other items used....adhesives and Black Soot Distress Ink
(not supposed to count in the total since they are basics).

So that's that! Can you craft 5 for $5? Bet you can.....I challenge you!!
And tell you what.....leave me a link of your creations....maybe I'll have
a little challenge contest of my own!

So, what are ya waiting for.....go get inky!!

STOP!!!!! Don't Throw That Away!!

Here is my entry into the "Don't Throw It Away" challenge over at
Moxie Fab World. Check it out and play along HERE!

Now this challenge I must say, is one of my faves! I absolutely am a
total package saving nut....lol. I have brad packaging, stamp packaging,
I save different boxes and tins. All to reuse and turn into something fun!
If you follow me regularly....you've seen a lot of these projects. This
particular card is made using the acrylic cover from my Fancy Pants
journaling sets. Storing those big wire bound "books" of journaling spots
was hard....so I took them apart....and saved some of the pieces and parts.

This is a pic of one of the covers I used to make this card:

Don't you love the "reflection" of me taking the pic?....lol.

This piece really made a perfect size for a card when folded in half....and
the holes at the bottom were perfect to weave my ribbon thru.

And the back of the card below...yes....no tape lines showing thru the back
of my acrylic card.....didn't want you to think I cheated....lol:

I used the yummy new Trinity Paper Arts Sincerely collection....and
some Want2Scrap Bling, Spellbinders Labels 14, and Black Soot
Distress Ink.

And I'm calling that done!

Remember to take the time to STOP!!.....and get some inky fun in today!